Method of and apparatus for treating metal sheets



Jan. 15, 1935. J. H. VAN CAMPEN METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR TREATING METAL SHEETS Filed Alig. 29, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 wamesszs INVENTOR ,2 awn, v w flrrann/IYS Jan. 15, 1935. J. H. VAN CAM'PEN 1,988,344

METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR TREATING METAL SHEETS Filed Aug. 29, 1955 2 sneet sneet 2 'WHTNESES INVENTOR n'rroRN an Patented Jan. 15, 1935 PATENT OFFICE METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR TREATING METAL SHEETS Jonah H. Van Campen, Youngstown, Ohio, assignor to United Engineering & Foundry Company, Pittsburgh, Pa., a. corporation of Pennsylvania Application August 29, 1933, Serial No. 687,272

4 Claims.

My invention relates to methods of and apparatus for treating metal sheets, and particularly to the manufacture of finished cold-rolled metal sheets.

In the cold rolling of metal sheets for the purpose of eliminating defects that may have been produced in hot rolling thereof and for the purpose of providing a desired finish to their surfaces, it is desirable to expedite the cropping of the sheets after they have been cold-rolled in.

order that the rolling of the sheets may proceed with the least possible delay. Such delay would occur if the cropping process were relatively slow, since the output of the mill is dependent upon the speed with which the rolled sheets are removed from the conveyor to which the rolled sheets are delivered.

In accordance with my invention I provide a cold-roll mill with a shearing mechanism that operates to crop both ends of a cold-rolled sheet simultaneously whereby the operation of shearing requires substantially only half the time that is ordinarily required when a single shear crops the ends of each sheet successively. An additional feature of the apparatus for practicing the invention is the provision of a continuous conveyor chain that is mounted on rotatable supports that are'connected to one of the shears and are movable therewith whereby the shear may be moved to adjust the space between it and the other shear without altering the length of the conveyor.

The details of construction and operation of my invention will be described in connection with the accompanying drawings in which Fig. 1 is a plan view of apparatus of a preferred embodiment, the roll stand being shown in section, and in which Fig. 2 is a view in side elevation of the apparatus of Fig. 1.

In the drawings a cold-roll mill 1 is of the 4-high type comprising backing rolls 2 and 3 and working rolls 4 and 5 that are mounted in a suitable'housing 6. The mill 1 is adapted to be supplied with metal sheets indicated at 7 that are supported by a piling device 8 which comprises a movable platform 9, the vertical height of which is adjusted by means of a motor 10 that is operatively connected to gear mechanisms 11 for adjusting the heights of vertical posts 12 which support the platform 9. r

The metal sheets '1 are supplied to the mill by suction cups 14 that are operated by any usual or suitable means not shown. 0n the outlet side of the mill 1 is a. conveyor 15 of any suitable type which may consist. for example, of suitable rollers or may be of endless type, as desired. At the outer end of the conveyor 15 are located two oppositely disposed shears l6 and 17, the shear 16 being fixed in position while the shear 17 is mounted for movement toward or from the shear 16 along suitable rails 18.

The shear 17 is .provided with suitable supports such as pulleys 19 around the lower portion thereof for supporting an endless conveyor 20 which is provided also with pulleys 21 that are mounted on fixed supports. This arrangement provides that when the shear 17 is moved along the rails 18 the path of movement of the conveyor 20 around the shear 17 is changed but the length of the conveyor 20 is not altered.

The arrangement whereby the shear may be adjusted in its position relative to the shear 16 enables the spacing of the shear to conform to that of the length of finished sheets that is desired.

The cropped sheets are received from the conveyor 20 by a piler 23 which stores the rolled and cropped sheets on a gravity conveyor 24 by means of which they may be transported in desired quantities to any suitable location.

In the operation of the apparatus, the mill 1 is driven by any suitable means through a pinion stand 25 and spindles 26. The conveyor 15 is driven by a motor 27 through gear mechanism 28. The shears 16 and 17 are respectively driven by motors 29 and 30 through gear mechanisms 31 and 32. A motor 33 drives conveyor 20 through gear mechanism 34.

As will be readily understood from the foregoing description, the operation of the cold-roll mill may be substantially continuous, the sheets being supplied successively by the suction cups 14 and reduced to proper gauge and finished by the mill 1 and supplied to the conveyor 15. The latter transfers the sheets to the conveyor 20 and when each sheet reaches a desired position the shears 16 and 17 operate simultaneously to crop the forward and trailing ends of the sheet to proper length, whereupon the sheet may be transferred immediately to the piling device inreadiness to receive the succeeding sheet to be cropped.

The shears may be operated either manually or automatically as desired. If manually controlled, the motors 29 and 30 wil be adapted for simultaneous control as by a push-button switch. It automatically controlled, a flag switch or equivalent device operated by the sheets, may cause both -motors 29 and 30 to operate the shears simultaneously.

The movable shear 17 may be adjusted for any position between that in which it isillustrated and the position indicated by dotted lines The advantages of the apparatus constructed and operated in accordance with my invention are that the operation is expedited by the simultaneous cropping of the ends of the sheet as distinguished from successive operations with a single shear. Accuracy in the.1ength of the finished sheets is insured because the length always corresponds to the spacing of the shears. The foregoing and'other advantages will be apparent to those skilled in the artof construction and operation of apparatus of the same general character as that of my invention.

1. In combination a pair of shears, .one of which is movable toward and from the other, arranged in spaced alignment for simultaneously trimming the two ends of sheet material, and conveyingmeans for conveying the sheets from the one shear to a point spaced on the opposite side of the other shear and adapted to be automatically modified by the movement of said .movable shear without interrupting the continuity of its operation.

2. In combination a fixed and a movable shear ends of sheet material, independent drives for operating said shears, means for adjusting the 1 for simultaneously cutting thetwo ends of sheet material, one 01' said shears being movable to accommodate the cutting of the ends of sheets of different lengthsjand a continuous conveyor extending from one/of said shears around the other to a pointbeyond the latter and so arranged as to be automatically modified by the movement of the movable shear to accommodate the change in position of said shear.

4. In combination, a pair of aligned shears for simultaneously trimming the two ends of sheet material, a continuous conveyor for supporting and conveying the sheets from one of said shears to'a point spaced on the opposite side of the other, and bearing supports for said conveyor on said shears which are so arranged as to automatically modify said conveyor when said movable shear is adjusted to accommodate its change in position.

JONAHII. VAN CAMPEN. 

